Gages



Feb. 4,. 1958 J. M. CARGILL ET AL GAGES :5 S heets-Sheet 1 Filed July 20, 1954 [FIG.

INVENTOR Feb. 4, 1958 J. M. CARGILL ET AL 2,821,783

GAGES Filed July 20, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

J. M. CARGILL ET AL 2,821,783

Feb. 4, 1958 GAGES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 20, 1954 INVENTOR.

United States PateiitiO GAGES Jeffrey M. Cargill, Weatherslield Bow, and Hugh M. Taft, Springfield, Vt., assignors to Bryant Chucking Grinder Company, Springfield, Vb, a corporation of Vermont Application July 20, 1954, Serial No. 444,414

8 Claims. (Cl. 33-148) This invention relates to gages for workpieces and particularly to gages for the gaging of threaded workpieces. It has for an object to provide a relatively simple gage especially useful for the accurate gaging by unskilled persons of large numbers of identical threaded workpieces,

and yet at the same time one which may readily be adapted for the gaging of workpieces of difierent sizes and configurations.

It is a feature of the novel gage of the invention that it may be positively maintained in either gaging or nongaging position, thus allowing an operator the use of both hands in the placing or the removal of a workpiece on the gage or while the workpiece is in gaging position on the gage.

Another feature of the novel gage of the invention is its ready adaption to either internal or external gaging, each of which requires a different direction of gage element movement, an internal gage being opened into gaging position and an external gage being closed into gaging position. Heretofore, a separate gage has commonly been used for each type of gaging, but by a simple adjustment of the gage element structure of the novel gage of the invention, it may be quickly altered from an internal to an external gage, or vice versa. Furthermore, such reversal requires no critical adjustment of the gage other than the usual setting to a standard workpiece and thus may be performed by relatively unskilled gage operators.

Other objects and features of the invention will be apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof together with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is an isometric view of a gage of the invention arranged as an external gage;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view, partly broken away, of the gage of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the gage of Fig. 1, with a portion thereof broken away, and

Fig. 4 is a plan view, partly broken away, of the gage of Fig. 1 arranged as an internal gage.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the gage of this invention includes a main fixed frame and a movable sub frame 11, each carrying a gage element supporting member and being connected together by a pair of spaced parallel reeds 16 for relative movement. Each of the reeds 16 is secured at one end to the main fixed frame 10 and at the other end to the movable subframe 11, and extend generally along said frame 10 on opposite sides thereof. The reeds 16 are of substantial width, thus to provide a rigid and secure structure affording substantial resistance to relative motion of the members in a direction parallel to the plane of the reeds, but permitting the members to be moved relatively to one another in either direction from their neutral or rest position in a single plane perpendiclb lar to that of the reeds, and in a substantially rectilinear direction. Said reeds 16 act as the sole support for said movable frame 11 and also as the sole means to urge said supporting members into gaging position, such gaging positionnormally being slightly displaced from the neutral position of the reeds, on either side of said neutral position, to provide the requisite gaging pressure.

On the upper portions of the fixed frame 10 and movable subframe 11 are provided gage element supporting members 12 and 14, respectively, such members having relatively fiat upper surfaces adapted to support suitable gage elements 6 and 8, said gage elements being mounted on said members by machine screws 18 fitting into tapped holes in said support members. Since the gage shown in Figs. 1 through 3 is intended for external thread gaging, gage elements 6 and 8 have their shank portions internally threaded for gaging engagement with the external threads of a workpiece. Other gage elements may readily be substituted by the removal of screws 18.

The movable subframe 11 carrying gage element supporting member 14 is provided with camming means carried thereby and interposed between said movable subframe 11 andframe 10 to urge the gage elements 6 and 8 mounted on the supporting members into non-gaging position substantially displaced from the neutral position of the reeds 16, and to retain them in such position until released. Such camming means includes a curved cam member 20 mounted on movable supporting member 14 and having on each side thereof opposed cam surfaces 22 and 22 slanted outwardly and rearwardly away from the centerline of said cam, and a cam follower in the form of .a-roller 30 mounted on one end of a pivoted lever 32 having at its other end an operating key 34. The lever 32 is pivoted in lateral adjustably fixed position on a shaft 36 mounted on gage frame 10 so that roller 30 may be swung, by downward movement of said key, about shaft 36 as an axis to cooperate with one of said rearwardly and outwardly displaced cam surfaces 22 and 22, urging curved cam 20 in a sideways direction to open gage elements 6 and 8 into non-gaging position, such cam 20 being curved radially with respect to shaft 36 so that roller 30 will continue to contact a cam surface during its travel.

Shaft 36 has a threaded end portion 38 fitting into a threaded bore 41) on one side of frame 10, its other end fitting into a smooth bore 42 on the opposite side of said frame so that the position of lever 32 with its roller 30 may be adjusted sideways by rotating shaft 36 through its adjusting slot 46 so as to engage either side of cam 20 to reverse the direction of relative movement of frame 10 and subframe 11 as urged by said cam 24), all as hereinafter more fully explained, a set screw 44 being maintained in said threaded bore 40 to maintain shaft 36 fixed in its adjusted position.

Preferably, in order to lock gage elements 6 and 8 in non-gaging position, additional cam surfaces 24 and 24' are provided on opposite sides of said cam 20, said additional surfaces being positioned rearwardly of cam surfaces 22 and extending slightly rearwardly and inwardly from the rearward end of said cam surfaces 22 and 22' to provide a lock by means of the spring tension of reeds 16, so that said gage elements 6 and 8 may be locked in nongaging position by fully depressing key 34 to move roller 30 onto a cam surface 24 or 24, and will be maintained in such position.

A vertically extending arm 26 is also provided on cam 20 to engage with the actuating stem 50 of a dial indicator 52 mounted on main frame 10, so that said dial indicator will be responsive to relative movement between sub frame 11 and main frame 10. Release of the gage elements 6 and-8 may be readily accomplished by pressing operating key 34 upward until roller 30 passes forwardly and downwardly onto a cam surface 22 or- 22' and then clearofsaid. cam surface, after which. reedsv 161will1urge the gaging Ielements together into gaging position.

To use the gage of Figs. 1 through 3, it is first set in non-gaging position with cam roller 30 in contact with a cam surface 24 :to .lock :the external gage1elementscin their. open non-gaging position with ireeds 16 substan tially displacedifrom 'their'ineutralposition with sub lframe -11in.a position displaced .to :the ;left ,(Fig. :3) tof imain frame 10, and there positively .maintain them .to :provide clearance for the ithreads of a workpiece which mayithen be inserted into .the gage elements '6 and '8. With the workpiece ;in position, the "gage may .be release .to closed :gagingposition 'by pressing upward on operating key 34. .This will'move roller 30I=fromthe gage :locking cam-surface.24-nn'to camzsurface '22 and :th'en clear or such cam .surface,'whereuponrthe gage elements 6 andt8=will move relatively :toward ronesanotherand :into closed gaging po- -:sition 'in contact with the workpiece as 1 urged :by reeds 16 with the reeds .slightly displa'ced from'theirineutral positionwith isubframe .1 1 in a position :but slightly Ldisplaced tolthe.left (Fig.-3) of'main frame-1'0. lhus,:the reeds 16 sproiii'de the :sole gaging pressure, being fixed -.into La position between their further displaced non-gaging position ianditheir neutral positionso that gage'ele- "ments 6 and 8 .remain positively maintained .in gaging position.

The indicatoractuating stem 50 will then beierrgaged with :arm 26 on .cam 20 .of m'ovablesupporting 'member 14 to give a ll'eading 'ion :indicator '52, it being assumed that the gage has :been previously set to astandard plug .inithe usuallma'nner. After the-deviation from standard "diameter has lthus been determined, .key 34 :is pressed downwardly to :nrove :roller 30 :rearwa'rdly along :cam surface 22 to urge cam 20 'isi'deways'itomoveithe gaging elements from iga'gin'g.into'Inon-gaging position. again.

:In FigJ-l-LiSl-Sl'lDWl'lithB gage of Figs. .1 'throughd with the Troll-er 30i'in"adjusted position on the otherzside tot cam- 20 to providean internal gage, as by laterally repoisiti'oning eamrmember 20 on movable subframe 11. For "such a:gage, suitable internal gage elements 6' vand 8 are mounted on supporting members 12 and and the .ls'h'aft 36 adjusted laterally 'so that'roller 30 is fixed .in position to engage cam surfaces 22 and 24' to urge'cam .20 in the opposite direction from :that above described. The reversal .of..theiroller 30 will result in the*movable tsubfrarne 11;also "being moved in the oppositedirection .tothe rightinlEig. 4, .also displacing thexreeds 16 intthe 'Iopposite direction, so that :depressing operating key :30 will close the gaging elements 'fi'and 8' into .noniga'ging (position with reeds :16 substantiallyzdisplaced .fromztheir .neutral position. The actuating stem 50 of dial indi- .cator .52 willalsobe operated.in'eithenposition bymeans .;of the arm .26 positionedzeentrallyrofcam 20.

In the operation of the internal gage configuration of Fig. 4, the downward movementpf actuating key 34 .closes the gage elements 6 and r8 intovnon-gaging position with the reeds l6substantially displaced from their neutral position, .so .that .a workpiece "may .be placed around them. Upward movement-of actuating .-key 34 willthen allow thegage elements '6 and '8' tomove away "from one another into gaging positionby virtue of the "spring action of reeds '1'6, with the reeds'being slightly displaced to the right "(Fig '4) of'their neutral position when gaging elements-6 and-8 contact the workpiece, to "providethe'requisite gaging pressure, the indicator 50 being actuated by arm 26 as before. Then"by;pres'sing 'key 34the gage elements '6 "and 8 will be returned to "'close'd'non-gaging positionso"thatthe"workpiece can be removed.

As a modification of our -invention, an additional fspring means may be used if desired to provide the rei'quisite gaging pressure, and with such structurethe reeds zmay 'be in their :neutral'positi'on \when gaging, although "displaced flwhenizin za': nonegaglng lp'ositio'n, an'd ssaid 'addi- :tionaltspring swill thuszact with the re'eds ifior-zatkleast-lth-e 4 initial portion of their travel to move the gage elements .efromnonagaging .to. gaging position.

Thus it will be seen that the invention provides a surprisingly simple yet universal gage readily used by unskilled persons for the accurate gaging of workpieces. It will be apparent to those skilled in the gage art that various modifications not herein disclosed may be made in the novel gage within the spirit of our invention and the scope of the appended olaims.

We-claim:

I. A gage comprising 'a .pair of. gage.element.supportging members, gage .elements on reach of said supporting members, a pair of reeds arranged in parallel relation, one end of 'eahpf'saidreeds .beingsecured to:one end of each of said.members,.said.reeds forming the sole means for supporting one of said members to provide yielding substantially rectilinear motion relative to the other of said members to open and closed positions of said gage elements 'and toxprovidegagingpressure on said gage elementsfmeans interposed betweensaid'supporting members-for displacing said supporting members from gaging position with said reeds -slightly displaced from a neutral position in one 'directi'on'tonomgaging position with said reeds ifur'ther'displacedin the 'same "direction, "means for selectively-positioning said means inter-posed between said supporting members to move said'supporting members in -'opposite dire'ctions'from a neutral point .to *reverse .the direction of movement from :gaging to non-gaging position :of said supporting members, and indicating "means 'responsive "to the relative displacement of said "supporting members.

2. A gage comprising a pair of gage element supporting imenibers; gage elements on=each 'ofsaid 'supporting'memor *bers fa'p'air olf reeds arranged in 'parallel "relation, one

" end -of each of said' reeds *being secured to -one end of "each iof-said'm'embersysai'd rreeds forming the sole means ffor supporting one iof said members to provide yielding substantiallyrectilinear motion relative to the other of s'aid'members to open and-closed positions of said gage 40 elements and :toprovide gaging'pressure'on said gage elelmentspmeans interposed betweensaid supporting members --forz displacing. saidisupporting members. from gaging posi- "l'tionwith saidrreeds.slightlyidisplaced from a neutral position in one directionio'non-gaging position with said reeds rfurtherdisplaced .intthe same .direction. and'for releasably ".maintainingtsaid supporting members inisaid further dis- ;placed positionzagainst .the' yielding action 'of :said reeds, means :for :selectively positioning "said .means interposed between said supporting members to move sa'idtsupporting :members ;in opposite .directions Ifl'Ol'll .a .neutral :point to reverse the direction of movement :from gaging .to non- .gagingjposition 1of:said;supp.orting anembers, and indicating means responsive to the relative displacement of:said supporting members.

3. A gage comprising a frame, a pair of gage element :supporting members-mounted on .said frame, one of said supporting members beingmaintained in'fixed position :relative tosaidxframe andthe other. maintainedin movable tposition :relativeatosaidframe, gage elements on each of :said fsupporting imembers, .a vpair of reeds arranged in ip'ara1lel;relation, oneiend o'f'each of said reeds being :secured to :one end of each 'of 'said "members, said reeds 'supportingonenf said members for yielding-substantially -rectilinear=motion relative to the otherof said members in a directiontomove saidgage elements'towar'd andaway -.from one anether" to 'open 'and'closesaid gage elements,

' ear'nmingrmeans interposedbetween-said 'supporting'mem- "bersy said means ineludinga'cam*surface curved about an axis 'andmounted on said'movable support member and a 'cam follower -pivota'lly mounted -on said "frame 'forswinging move'ment about said axis to engage saidsur- '.f-ace*tourge saidnrovable support'member'into'nonfgaging position relatively to said fiXed support'member and oper- '-=atingimeans fon motiing said cam surface' and carn'follower netatively :to tone anotlrer h'tl) progressively displace-said movable supporting member relative to said fixed supporting member into non-gaging position, and indicating means mounted on said frame responsive to the relative displacement of said supporting members.

4. A gage as claimed in claim 3 in which said camming means further includes lever means for pivoting said cam follower to swing it about said axis along said cam surface.

5. A gage comprising a frame, a pair of gage element supporting members mounted on said frame, one of said supporting members being maintained in fixed posiiton relative to said frame and the other maintained in movable position relative to said frame, gage elements on each of said supporting members, a pair of reeds arranged in parallel relation, one end of each of said reeds being secured to one end of each of said members, said reeds supporting one of said members for yielding substantially rectilinear motion relative to the other of said members in a direction to move said gage elements toward and away from one another to open and close said gage elements and to urge said supporting members into gaging position, camming means interposed between said supporting members, said means including a cam having a first cam surface slanted in one direction and a second cam surface slanted in the other direction, a cam follower movable along said surfaces relatively thereto initially engaging said first cam surface to displace said movable support member into non-gaging position and subsequently engaging said second cam surface releasably to maintain said movable supporting member in non-gaging position, and operating means for moving said cam surfaces and cam follower relatively to one another to first progressively displace said movable supporting member relative to said fixed supporting member into non-gaging position and subsequently releasably to maintain said supporting member in non-gaging position, and indicating means mounted on said frame responsive to the relative displacement of said supporting members.

6. A gage comprising a frame, a pair of gage element supporting members mounted on said frame, one of said supporting members being maintained in fixed position relative to said frame and the other maintained in movable position relative to said frame, gage elements on each of said supporting members, a pair of reeds arranged in parallel relation, one end of each of said reeds being secured to one end of each of said members, said reeds supporting one of said members for yielding substantially rectilinear motion relative to the other of said members in a direction to move said gage elements toward and away from one another to open and close said gage elements and to urge said supporting members into gaging position, camming means interposed between said supporting members, said means including a pair of opposed earns, a cam follower, means for selectively positioning said cam follower to cooperate with one only of said cam surfaces, and operating means for moving said cooperating cam and cam follower relative to one another to displace said movable supporting member relative to said fixed supporting member into non-gaging position, and indicating means mounted on said frame responsive to the relative displacement of said supporting members.

7. A gage as claimed in claim 2, in which said displacing means further includes a curved cam member mounted on said movable supporting member, said cam member having opposed surfaces slanting rearwardly away from one another, and a cam follower pivotally mounted on said frame in a first adjustable position selectively to engage a first one only of said cam surfaces and in a second adjustable position to engage a second one only of said cam surfaces, whereby said gage may be selectively adjusted for internal or external gaging.

8. A gage comprising a frame, a pair of gage element supporting members mounted on said frame, one of said supporting members being maintained in fixed position relative to said frame and the other maintained in movable position relative to said frame, gage elements on each of said supporting members, a pair of reeds arranged in parallel relation, one end of each of said reeds being secured to the other of said members, said reeds supporting one of said members for yielding substantially rectilinear motion relative to the other of said members in a direction to move said gage elements toward and away from one another to open and close said gage elements and to urge said supporting members into gaging position, camming means interposed between said supporting members, said means including a pair of opposed cams, a cam follower, means for selectively positioning said cam follower to cooperate with one only of said cam surfaces, and operating means for moving said cooperating cam and cam follower relatively to one another to displace said movable supporting member relative to said fixed supporting member into non-gaging position and releasably to maintain said supporting members in non-gaging position, and indicating means mounted on said frame responsive to the relative displacement of said supporting members.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,625,462 Frauenthal Apr. 19, 1927 2,197,198 Street Apr. 16, 1940 2,258,760 Hecker Oct. 14, 1941 2,538,295 Cornell Jan. 16, 1951 2,581,946 Duesler Jan. 8, 1952 2,588,820 Gates et al. Mar. 11. 1952 

